Southend High Street rail bridge to be replaced

SOUTHEND High Street will be cut in half and train services stopped for two days as workmen replace a 130-year-old bridge.

The area under the High Street rail bridge will be closed to pedestrians and almost 250 buses will replace trains on Saturday, February 2, and Sunday, February 3, as Netword Rail carry out the £2million replacement work.

Steve Knight, general manager at Network Rail, said: “The work we are carrying out at Southend High Street is essential to keep improving the railway in Essex. The line from Fenchurch Street to Shoebury is the most punctual in the country and this work is essential to continue delivering consistent levels of service to passengers.

"We are combining the work on the bridge, which has come to the end of its life, with improvements to the track and new lighting in the area.”

The work will mean pedestrians will not be able to walk under the bridge and signs will be installed directing them to diversionary routes.

Stewards will be on both sides of the bridge to direct people to these routes.

The scheme, which includes improved lighting to the public highway and new track, will mean the current structure is replaced with a new bridge designed to last for at least the next 120 years.

Buses will replace trains between Southend Central and Shoebury in both directions.

There will be a bus every 15 minutes for most of Saturday and a half-hourly service at other times.

Train services between Southend Central and the rest of the c2c line will be unaffected.

Mr Knight said: “The High Street in Southend will be open for business as usual and we are working hard with Southend Council and the town centre partnership to miminise any disruption to shoppers.

“Signage will be installed in the local area to give people alternative routes. We do appreciate this project will cause some disruption and thank the people of the area for their understanding."

Dawn Jeakings, chairman of the town centre partnership, said: “We are in conversation with Network Rail over the work.

“If it’s an old bridge and it needs repairing and replacing, this needs to be done. It’s just about communicating it in the right way.”

For more information about the rail replacement bus service visit www.c2c-online.co.uk/travel_information/service_alterations/planned_service_alterations.

lennyfy wrote:
&quot;Almost 250 buses" bit of a typo there i think Echo more like 25 unless they are planning to park them end to end through to Shoebury

If you add up all the journeys the buses will need to make, that is where you'll get 250.

[quote][p][bold]lennyfy[/bold] wrote:
"Almost 250 buses" bit of a typo there i think Echo more like 25 unless they are planning to park them end to end through to Shoebury[/p][/quote]If you add up all the journeys the buses will need to make, that is where you'll get 250.Rouge9

SARFENDMAN wrote:
So the old bridge has lasted 130 years but the new only expected to go 120. So we cannot match previous technology and they call that progress?

Don't ask that question to the dudes fixing the bridge(!)

Work will be suspended and consultants bought in and blah blah blah

[quote][p][bold]SARFENDMAN[/bold] wrote:
So the old bridge has lasted 130 years but the new only expected to go 120. So we cannot match previous technology and they call that progress?[/p][/quote]Don't ask that question to the dudes fixing the bridge(!)
Work will be suspended and consultants bought in and blah blah blahcowboycountry